
Broadway actress Merle Louise, 90, died on Jan. 11. She was best known for her work with Stephen Sondheim—Louise appeared in Company (as Susan), Sweeney Todd (as the plot-twisting Beggar Woman), Into the Woods (in three roles), and began her Broadway career in Gypsy, playing June for most of the Broadway and national tour runs. She also played Broadway in La Cage aux Folles, Kiss of the Spider Woman, and Billy Elliot. Louise also toured and did regional theater, playing both the classics and moderns. Of her onstage Mama Rose, Ethel Merman, Louise said, “I really loved the lady. I've heard many other stories, but we got on just fine. I could see sides of her that other people didn't see. It was a good experience, and it's nice that we were friends for a long time afterwards." Louise suggested the doll that the Beggar Woman carried in Sweeney Todd: “It was a doll that belonged to my daughter Laura. I put a little tiny baby shirt that belonged to Matthew when he was a baby, and a little tiny pin that belonged to my daughter Heather, so I had all three of my kids on that doll. So it was really special to me. When I carried her around, it was like carrying my life.”
